Entropy
by MagicalFish
Summary: Not so good at summaries-A Falz finding quest, with romance and added intrigue
1. Default Chapter

Warning-This fic will eventually contain gay romance, swearing and intense violence. I'll change the rating accordingly. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------  
  
The Barble's claw came down on Ryan's shoulder with a resounding smack, knocking him to the ground. The Mothvist's poison had weakened him considerably, and he knew he could not take much more punishment. His blood pounding in his ears, he crawled to his feet and ran for the door, hoping to make it to the previous room that he had cleared of monsters. His mag, a Varaha, apparently did not get it into its head to heal him, and Ryan paused outside the monster filled room, weighing his options. He had no magic left, not even enough to cast Anti or Ryuker, and it was a long way back to the portal back to to Pioneer 2. He was not content to sit and let the poison take its toll, though, and he began a mad dash for the distant portal, cursing his previous decision to not carry telepipes. As he ran into the next room, however, two Gulgus leapt out, snarling. Ryan gasped in shock and dismay, remembering that he had not made sure this room was cleared of monsters before moving on. He hedged his bets toward running, but the next door eluded him as he felt a burning pain in his lower back. The last thing he saw was the forest floor rushing up to meet him.  
  
"I am so sick of waking up in the hospital!"  
Ryan opened his eyes his eyes and blinked, startled into wakefulness by the voice. He looked around, realizing that he, too, had been taken to the hospital, most likely having been transferred there by his mag. He looked for the source of the voice that had woken him, only to find a grumbling FOmar in the next bed.  
You got knocked out too? What did you in?" The FOmar's directness was vaguely unnerving, but Ryan found that there was something about this person that made Ryan want to be open with him.  
"I got poisoned, then bitten.I went out at night, to see their true forms." Ryan realized he sounded fairly weak, and blushed. What was wrong with him? He was usually more together than this. It must be an effect of getting knocked out, he figured.  
"Humph. One of those freaky gulgus things? Same thing happened to me, only I was paralyzed first. A Force unable to use magic is pretty pathetic." He laughed good-naturedly, and Ryan found himself smiling too, seeing the humorous truth in that statement.  
"Hey, what's your name, anyway? I didn't expect a powerful HUmar to be laid low in the hospital with me." The FOmar raised an eyebrow, and Ryan found himself blushing again at his compliment.  
"Um, I'm Ryan.what's your name?" He replied, trying to shake off his awkwardness.  
"I'm Ari, the most pathetic Force in the land!" He said with a smile. "I think I would be better off as a Ranger; I can't regenerate TP, and my mental strength is weaker than a FOmarls." He insulted himself with humor rather than bitterness, however, and Ryan laughed, having warmed up quickly to the garrulous FOmar.  
"Seriously, though, ever night I go out, and every night I end up in here. It's damn annoying. The nurses know me by name now. Oh well. I guess it's my fault. I never use Ryuker when I should, and I rarely use Resta." He grinned at Ryan, then. "But I'm sure you don't want to hear about my shortcomings. Was this your first time going out at night?"  
Ryan nodded. "I heard that the monster's true forms are revealed only at night. I thought that seeing them would explain some of the mysteries surrounding the explosion.but I guess I'm not strong enough to make it."  
"Well, it doesn't get any easier, I assure you" Ari said, grinning again. "I don't dare brave the caves until I can at least get rid of that damn dragon."  
Ryan perked up at this. "Another dragon?"  
Ari sighed. "Of course, another dragon. Only this one's not so easy. You can get frozen just trying to breathe in there." Ryan just blinked, trying to imagine it.  
Just then, a nurse walked in, addressing both of them. "Are you okay? You had a rough time. Be careful." She then seemed to notice Ari, and smiled. "Hi again, Ari. Is this a new friend of yours?" Ryan tried to intercede, but Ari piped up happily.  
"Yeah, he's a friend. He has just as much bad luck as I do." The nurse giggled.  
"I'll suppose I'll be seeing both of you around more often then," and winked slyly at Ryan, before trotting out of the room. Ryan just stared.  
Ari laughed, breaking the silence. "Unless you want to follow her, let's go. We've recuperated enough." Ryan shook himself out of his daze, and followed Ari out onto Pioneer 2. It was quiet at night, with only a scarce few solitary hunters roaming about-none of the laughing, high spirited groups that went to explore Ragol during the day.  
"Hey, I've been thinking," Ari said, clapping his hand onto Ryan's shoulder, much to his surprise. "We should team up. If we're going to explore Ragol at night, and beat those freaky monsters, we should be safer in a duo. What do you think?"  
Ryan gulped, flustered by Ari's hand on his shoulder. He was beginning to notice that Ari's presence had a certain affect on him-a pleasant one, but not one that he was willing to accept.  
"Hello? What do you think?" Ari snapped him out of his pensiveness, and Ryan nodded, looking down to hide his blush. Don't even think it he said to himself. You know what they do to homosexuals.He swallowed fearfully.  
"Wonderful!" Ari said, not noticing Ryan's reaction, and dancing in a happy little circle. "We should get some sleep during the day today, and then meet back here when it's dark again, okay?" Ryan nodded again, and Ari touched him on the shoulder once more before disappearing into the residential section of pioneer 2. Ryan started walking towards his domicile as well, happy that he had someone to help him-but also worried that something might happen that would betray what he was. --------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------  
  
This is my first (serious) fanfiction, usually I write original stuff. Please review, 'cause if you don't, I'll assume you don't want to read any more and I won't bother to post any more. 


	2. Chapter 2!

Chapter 2! I'm keeping it up so far.Review or may your eyes fall out! Hahahaha! O_o  
  
Ryan couldn't sleep. Going out to fight at night meant sleeping during the day, and Ryan was not yet accustomed to it. He remembered that he was supposed to meet Ari, though, and he opted to give up on sleep and started putting on his armor. He decided to bring his sword instead of his saber; it hadn't helped him last night, he remembered wryly. Finally he was ready, and he grabbed his mag and satchel of supplies before heading out.  
The ship was enormous, and most of its size was due to the amount of living quarters it contained. Ryan took many turns before arriving at the portal area, and he saw few people. He leaned against the wall, waiting for Ari to arrive, when a gruff voice alerted him.  
"Out of the way!" The voice belonged to a very intimidating looking Racast, his enormous feet thudding on the metal floor, who was being followed by three people rolling a vat of what looked like grape juice. As they sauntered by, though, Ryan leaned over to get a whiff of it, and grimaced. This was not ordinary grape juice.  
Immediately, the RAcast had him pinned against the wall, while the other three looked away nervously. "What business do you have with us?"  
Ryan panicked, unsure of what he had done. "Um, I."  
Suddenly, Ari's voice rang out, cutting through Ryan's nervousness. "Hey, Merk, relax! He's with me, okay?"  
The RAcast-Merk, apparently-gave Ryan a menacing glare before letting him go. The other three, a collection of scruffy looking civilians, grabbed hold of the vat and hurried off with it, Merk following, giving Ari a brief nod to acknowledge him. Ryan was just confused.  
"You know those guys?" He said, turning to Ari for clarification.  
Ari chuckled. "You, my friend, just stumbled upon the underground liquor smuggling operation. If I wasn't a common patron of their product, you could have been in a lot of trouble."  
Ryan began to understand. "But liquor is."  
Ari slapped him on the shoulder, much to Ryan's discomfort. "Exactly-liquor is outlawed on Pioneer 2. Since we've landed, though, people brew the alcohol on Ragol and smuggle it into their rooms. The people you just saw run the biggest speakeasy on the ship."  
Ryan gaped. He didn't know whether to be frightened, awed, or both. Ari grinned at his reaction, and said with a smile "Once we explore Ragol a little more, I'll take you to one of their parties. It's quite a time."  
Ryan decided to let the offer hang, for now. He had never drunk alcohol before, and had heard numerous things about what it did to people, including sickness. He motioned Ari to the portal, and Ari agreed, stepping into the blue rings of light. With a flash, they disappeared from Pioneer 2.  
The darkness would have been pitch, but their mags illuminated the night. Ari raised an eyebrow, looking at Ryan's mag.  
"A Varaha, huh? Not bad, for a Hunter." Ari sported a very pathetic looking Ushashu. "I couldn't really level it properly." he explained sheepishly. "I save all my money for Trifluids."  
Ryan nodded; he had heard how difficult it was for Forces to hang onto money. He began to trot out into the first area, but Ari stopped him with a hand on his arm. "What." Ryan began to protest, but then Ari pulled back and with a flourish, cast two spells. Immediately, Ryan felt his body pulse with a surge of adrenaline, his mouth left hanging open in surprise. Ari smirked.  
"Shifta and Deband, remember? I never fight without them."  
"Oh.right." Ryan felt foolish; he had forgotten that Forces could use those techniques. They were useful, though, as with the adrenaline now being pumped through his blood, he felt more alert and prepared.  
"Now we go!" Ari said happily, running on ahead. "It'll be neat to see how much stamina you have."  
Ryan paused, reflecting on what an interesting choice of words that was, before following.  
As they ran into the first room, four Bartles appeared, roaring at them before charging. Their speed was incredible, given that they were really nothing more than a mutated looking turtle, and Ryan found himself surrounded very quickly. He swung his sword in a wide arc, cutting all of them, but nowhere near enough to critically injure them. They flinched, and then two of them working in tandem hit Ryan hard over the head, knocking him on his back. He was quickly on his feet, swinging his sword again, when another claw hit him in the back, and Ryan stumbled. He fumbled to use Resta, his slow casting abilities an ever present curse, but before he could, a huge blast of fire lit the entire room. The Bartles groaned and died, their bodies decaying almost instantly. Ryan quickly cast Resta, healing the numerous small scratches the Bartles had given him, and then felt stupid, remembering that Ari's techniques would have been much more effective. He looked over at him apologetically, but Ari simply beamed at him.  
"With you to distract them, I can cast spells without getting smacked! I can make them easier for you to fight, too. Don't worry, just fight as you usually do, and I'll take care of you." Ari seemed very excited about the newfound partnership, and Ryan found himself echoing Ari's sentiments. It would certainly be easier, now that he had Ari to cast support spells, and to attack if he ran into trouble.  
As they progressed, Ari focused on healing Ryan when he needed it, and casting Jellen and Zalure on the enemies, while Ryan led the enemies away from the comparatively frail Force. Ryan still found himself being knocked to the ground more often than he liked, but there was little either of them could do about that.  
Ryan jumped into a room for a brief respite, Ari following, and then Ari peered at something behind Ryan's back. He turned, and his jaw dropped open in surprise. Before them stood a large stone pillar, apparently ancient, and inscribed with familiar characters, but in a different language.  
"What.what's that?" Ryan managed to stutter, backing away from it. "Its way too old to have been put there by Pioneer 1.isn't it?"  
Ari frowned, then looked resolute and approached the pillar. He placed his finger on it, and began to trace the characters, repeating them curiously as he did so. "M.U.T."  
Suddenly, they heard a sound, like machinery from under the ground, and the pillar began to glow and rotate. Ari jumped back as if burned, and Ryan gasped in a brief moment of fear.  
"Okay," Ari said nervously, inspecting his hand for any wounds. "Apparently this thing isn't made from stone."  
Ryan looked closely at the strange pillar, but was reluctant to approach it after what had happened. "Are you okay?" He tried not to let any unnecessary concern color his tone, and when Ari nodded, he motioned for the door. "Let's get out of here, then." Ryan said. "I don't like that thing."  
Finally, after hours of fighting and weary despite repeated castings of Deband and Shifta, they neared the dome. Ari perked up at the sight of it.  
"That's where the dragon will be! C'mon, we'll be able to get him now!" He ran ahead, Ryan hard pressed to keep up with the lighter equipped Force. As Ryan caught up, though, Ari stopped dead, and Ryan practically slammed into the two Hildelts that had just leapt down from a nearby tree that overhung the dome.  
They roared, pounding their chests much like monkeys, before one of them punched Ryan hard in the chest, sending him sprawling a good ten feet away. The two began to surround him, their large size making escape impossible. Noting the danger that Ryan was in, Ari began firing bolts of Gizonde, hoping to distract the monsters from Ryan's prone form. One of them finally noticed Ari, who began firing faster in hopes that he could kill it before it advanced on him. Instead of walking toward him, though, the Hildelt leaned back before spitting a Gizonde of its own, stunning Ari painfully. Now that his techniques were temporarily impossible, Ari backed up fearfully, doubled over in pain from the electrical shock, as the Hildelt lumbered toward him much faster than he would have liked.  
Suddenly, a sword swung from behind, cutting the Hildelt through the torso and convincing it to turn. Ryan had gotten up, and when the Hildelt had attacked Ari, had taken the opportunity to dispatch the other. He swung his sword again, taking more time with each swing to increase the damage done, and finally the monster succumbed to its wounds, screeching as it died. Ryan leaned on his sword for a moment, panting from exertion, before looking at Ari as if to ask if he was alright.  
Ari smiled and nodded, still wincing from the shock, but he knew it would subside shortly. When it did, he cast Resta, healing both of them completely, Ryan sighing with relief at the sudden absence of pain. Ari grinned, apparently amused by Ryan's reaction, and Ryan blushed and looked away.  
"Okay, now the dragon!" Ari said, breaking the silence. "We just need to take that portal there."  
"Who put the portal there?" Ryan asked, looking at it distrustfully.  
Ari blinked, temporarily disconcerted. "I don't really know, actually. Another Hunter, I suppose. But don't worry!" He added, noting Ryan's look of skepticism. "I've been through it before; it leads to the dragon."  
Ryan shrugged and stepped into portal, Ari casting one more Shifta and Deband before following. "Remember," he said, in a more serious tone. "Don't breathe directly through your mouth. The air in there is so cold that it can damage your lungs temporarily."  
Ryan nodded, his eyes widening, before they teleported to the crater that had been the dome.  
  
The first thing Ryan noticed was the intense cold, and he repressed the urge to gasp, remembering Ari's warning. The cold left his mind, however, when the dragon flew into the icy chamber, roaring its challenge at the two intruders.  
Ryan charged the creature's feet, noting that it must be similar to its daytime version, but was surprised when the dragon reached him in just two strides. He got over it quickly, though, and began swinging his sword, hitting its feet every time. The dragon stopped, then, and began to breathe ice, but Ryan didn't take notice as he concentrated on hitting its feet. Suddenly, the dragon lurched and fell, Ryan just barely able to avoid being crushed underneath it. He refocused on the dragon's body as it lay temporarily inert, his sword hitting it in both its foot and its wing. He then noticed Ari, on the other side of the beast, casting Foie after Foie, a look of intense concentration on his face. 'God, he looks so.Damnit!' He berated himself, 'now's not the time to think like that!' He returned to focusing on slicing the dragon, and finally, the beast got back to its feet, roaring in rage and pain. Ryan backed up, just managing to hit the feet one more time, as the dragon launched itself into the air. Ryan stood under it, hoping to hit it as it came down, until he heard Ari yelling from across the dome.  
"Get away from it! It's going." He didn't hear the rest of his message, as he saw the dragon spiraling down in preparation of burrowing. Ryan quickly followed Ari's advice, running to the side of the dome, as the dragon dove into the ice, breaking it into shards. Ryan shuddered as he imagined what it would be like to be hit by that.  
He heard the unmistakable sounds of claws scraping ice as the dragon burrowed underneath, the ominous mound heading first toward Ari, then toward Ryan. Suddenly, the mound vanished, and Ryan looked around confusedly for a moment before he saw Ari gesturing frantically at him to come toward him. He did so, and cursed his own idiocy at staying still as his movement allowed him to barely escape the dragon's burrowing in the rim of the dome behind him.  
Finally, the dragon surfaced, bellowing and flinging sharp shards of ice around the dome. Ryan ran towards it, ready to attack, and Ari began casting Rafoie over and over, filling the sky with red flares of light. As the dragon landed, Ryan accidentally ran into the shockwave and was thrown backwards, his sword skittering out of his hands onto the icy floor. He quickly grabbed his saber instead and continued to run at the dragon until he was within range, hacking at the monsters feet as the lights from Ari's Rafoies continued to flare.  
Suddenly, the icy cavern shook, and the monster roared. Ryan backed up, fearing an attack, but instead the dragon stumbled, and fell onto the ground, its heavy body further shaking the cavern. Before Ryan could even approach it again, it began to decay, the body melting to bare bones, and then to nothingness, as nature's entropy took effect.  
Ryan stopped in shock before smiling; noting the amounts of looted treasure the dragon must have taken from other hunters who had failed in their endeavors to kill it. Suddenly, Ari practically tackled him in an enthusiastic hug, spinning in a circle before putting him down. Ryan reminded himself to stay calm, Ari was just happy, not...interested. He sighed somewhat forlornly, but Ari's exuberance banished it.  
"We did it! I finally beat the dragon! Or, we beat the dragon! Now we can get to the entrance to the caves!" He clapped his hands happily before practically dragging Ryan into the portal back to Pioneer 2, smiling as they teleported back.  
"I can't believe it! We did it, without having to go to that damn hospital once! We have to celebrate!" Ryan just blinked, unsure of how to respond.  
"C'mon!" Ari said, smiling. "Tomorrow night, I'm taking you to that speakeasy I told you about earlier. It's got everything-Booze, music and women! I'll show you how to properly celebrate a victory!" Ryan smiled and nodded, intrigued with the whole idea. Ari hugged him again, and Ryan nervously extricated himself, afraid that he would betray his attraction physically, and backed up.  
"Alright, I'll meet you.here, tomorrow?" Ryan asked uncertainly, and Ari nodded happily, before he added, "Don't tell anyone about it! They have to have a certain amount of secrecy to be able to function."  
  
Ryan nodded before turning to go back to his home. He knew that Ari might feel slighted at the sudden abandonment, but he was tired, and his constant resisting of his own emotions was tiring as well. When he got home, he collapsed into bed, his battle weary body succumbing quickly to sleep.  
  
Alright, done with chap 2! Go me! 


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3, I think. I'm bad at the whole keeping track of things.  
  
Ryan awoke to a banging on his door. He rolled out of bed, landing on the floor with a thud. Confusion reigned for a moment before Ari's voice rang out from beyond the door.  
"Ryan, are you in there? You said you'd come to the party with me!"  
Ryan groaned, trying to fight off his sleepiness as he pulled on his clothes and then opened the door. The lights were one throughout the ship's hallway, and looking down over the rail; one could see that Ragol was bathed in darkness. He had slept longer than he thought, but the peaceful appearance of the dark planet below them did nothing to alleviate his exhaustion.  
Ari smirked at him, taking in his disheveled appearance. "You're wearing that?"  
Ryan became alert, and quickly compared his appearance to Ari's. He was wearing his Hunter's uniform, save for the armor and shield. Ari, however, had foregone his Force robes for a more stylish outfit, which consisted of loose, flowing white pants, a fluffy white shirt and a black vest. He had also put on some rectangular glasses and pulled his hair back, making him look somewhat like a hippy.  
Ari laughed at Ryan's expression. "If you don't have anything else to wear, c'mon. Happy hour is starting soon."  
Ryan simply followed Ari as he practically skipped down the hall, wondering what "happy hour" was and if it had anything to do with Ari's unusually jolly state.  
They walked through an incredible number of twisting hallways and turned numerous corners, before Ryan became almost completely lost, despite having lived on the ship for almost all his life. Finally, Ari stopped dead at a door at the end of a hallway and knocked loudly, while Ryan leaned against the wall to catch his breath. He was too tired for this.  
Suddenly, the door opened a smidgen and a HUcast peered out, giving Ari and Ryan the once over. "What's the password?" Ryan blinked rather stupidly, not fully believing the amount of secrecy needed.  
"Gimme a drink you retard, you know me!" Ari said in an annoyed fashion. The HUcast looked at him closely and gave the robot equivalent of a smile before opening the door for Ari. Ryan started to follow, but the HUcast glared him into stillness before turning back to Ari.  
"Can your friend here be trusted?"  
Ari shoved the apparently weaker android away, giving him a noncommittal wave of his hand. "Of course he can, I wouldn't bring anyone who would turn you guys in." With that, he grabbed Ryan by the arm and pulled him into the room. Ryan looked around at the blank walls, wondering why it was so......empty. Suddenly, he felt the room resonate from music coming from the door at the other end of the room.  
Ari grinned at Ryan's confusion, and dragged him to the door before throwing it open, the volume of the music inside hitting Ryan with an almost tangible force.  
Ryan gawked as he was pulled inside. This room was enormous, and filled to the rafters with people, most of who were dancing to music that Ryan had never heard before. It was like classical in that it had no words, or very few words, but it was entirely different in style. Classical was meant to move the mind, whereas the point of this music seemed to be to move the body. The intense bass seemed to resonate with Ryan's internal organs, creating an almost frightening sensation. At times, a bright white light would flash on and off at fast rates, causing the same effect one would get if they blinked very rapidly.  
Ari was amused at Ryan's reaction. "C'mon, go and mingle! The bar is over in the corner." He pointed to a dark corner of the room, furthest from the door. "They sell anything there." He slapped Ryan on the back before disappearing into the crowd, leaving him stranded.  
Ryan quickly tried to make sense of things. The music was coming from two huge speakers at the far wall, to the left of the bar, and most of the people were congregated in front of them. Others were scattered around the room, most of them holding drinks, Ryan noted. He began to wade through the groups of people, not particularly heading anywhere, just to be doing something. He stopped as he came upon a circle of people, and in the center was a Newman with two pairs of lights on strings. The Newman was swinging the lights in various patterns in time with the music, and the effect was dizzying to Ryan, though the people who had formed a circle seemed to be enjoying it immensely. The strobe light began to flash again, and Ryan found his senses completely overloaded. He stood motionless, staring at the ceiling in order to get his bearings, until someone banged into him roughly.  
He jumped, and looked down at the person, who turned out to be a rather busty young woman. She smiled at him endearingly, and grabbed his hand. "Are you new here? C'mon, I'll show you how to have some fun." With that, she started to drag him toward the speakers, and the resonance increased as they got closer. The volume of the music became painful, but Ryan seemed to be the only person noticing it. He dug in his heels, unwilling to get any closer to the speakers, intriguing as the music might be.  
The woman looked at him inquiringly, as if amazed that he might show resistance. "Uh, I'll just, go over there, thanks......" Ryan said, gesturing weakly toward the bar. The woman let him go, staring after him bemusedly as he half walked, half stumbled away. 'Wow, I sounded like an idiot.' Ryan thought ashamedly to himself.  
He finally made it to the bar, and noted with unease the number of people who seemed to have collapsed around it. He sat on a stool quickly, trying ineffectually to hide from his surroundings. He hunched his shoulders and ducked his head, as if that would help.  
"What do you want?" The gruff voice startled him, and he looked at the barkeeper, who held a number of differently shaped glasses. Ryan stuttered, unsure what to say, before the man he had previously thought unconscious on the stool next to his spoke up.  
"Get a martini, man. It, like, tastes how the music sounds."  
Ryan didn't know how to make that cerebral connection, but simply nodded to the barkeeper, trying to act like he knew what he was doing. With astounding speed, the barkeeper filled up an interesting, top- heavy glass and placed it in front of Ryan before moving down the bar to other arriving customers. Ryan had no idea what a martini cost, and just placed 5 dollars on the bar table, assuming that a martini couldn't cost that much more than a glass of water.  
He picked up the glass and sniffed it, unsure of how to drink it. He saw the man next to him chugging his drinks with astonishing speed, and tried to do the same, but ended up almost spitting all over the bar. He had never tasted anything like this before-it was kind of like carbonated water, only much more acidic, and strangely burning as it went down. He eyed it carefully, wondering how something that seemed fizzy didn't have any bubbles in it. This time he sipped it, and found it far more pleasurable, savoring it in his mouth before swallowing. The taste was nothing special, but it had an interesting texture for a drink. It was almost like it evaporated in his mouth as he drank it.  
Before long, he had finished it, and asked for another, which the barkeeper obliged him with without question. After getting halfway through the second, he began to feel strangely aware of what was going on around him. The pounding music no longer bothered him, and he found it enticing, now, instead of frightening. The strobe light didn't dizzy him, and he found it fascinating, wondering if he blinked at just the right time if he wouldn't be able to see at all.  
He got up from the bar, the music starting to affect him as it affected the people around him. As he began to walk toward the main group of people, though, he found that he had some trouble walking in a straight line. No one seemed to mind his bumbling, though, and he found he wasn't the only one affected such, which he thought was amusing.  
He stopped, leaning against the wall for a moment, before he spotted Ari, who was dancing in the main throng of people. It wasn't ballroom dancing, like Ryan knew, but simply moving to the rhythm as best one could. He stared at Ari, ignoring the people around him. The combined effects of the strobe light and the pounding music, coupled with Ryan's intoxication, made him find the sight of Ari incredibly arousing.  
Suddenly, someone banged into Ryan, causing him to hit his head against the wall painfully. He grimaced, his trancelike state broken, as he looked for the source of the interruption. A mean looking, fat little bald man glared at him with distaste. "Watch what you're doing, you idiot!" Ryan simply looked at him, confused, which seemed only to make the man angrier. He started shouting at Ryan, but Ryan was getting dizzy and ignored him, causing the man to yell louder, catching the attention of the people around him. Someone smirked and said "Tyler is at it again" and Tyler's furious yelling, none of which Ryan could understand, only increased in its belligerence. Ryan felt like he was going to pass out, and the room swayed threateningly.  
Thankfully, someone supported him as he began to lose his balance. He looked up at his supporter confusedly, only to see that it was Ari. He smiled drunkenly at him, and Ari rolled his eyes. "I leave you alone for two hours, and you get completely wasted?" Ryan struggled to stand again, but found it was harder than he had thought. "C'mon, I'll take you back to your room. Tyler, shut the hell up, you probably hit him, you little liar."  
With that, Ari half dragged Ryan out of the room, making it to the adjacent room before Ryan was able to actually get to his feet. The HUcast who had let them in laughed at Ryan's predicament, and waved mockingly as Ari helped Ryan out into the halls and finally to his room. With the lack of the pounding music and flashing lights, Ryan felt nothing but exhaustion now. Part of him wanted desperately to rub up against Ari, but the still sober part of his brain, what little there was left, convinced him that that would not be a good idea.  
Ari smiled as Ryan staggered into his room, not even making it to his bed before he started to fall. Ari caught him again, and lay him down on the couch, where Ryan curled into a ball and closed his eyes tightly, wishing that the room would stop spinning.  
"We've got the caves to explore tomorrow night, remember?" Ari said with laughter in his tone. "Sleep well."  
Ryan was asleep even before Ari was out of the room, closing the door behind him.  
  
Do I need to say something after every chapter? I feel like I do. Oh well. Hope you like it so far. 


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